Malcolm and Felix

Felix Ferguson would have you know that he wasn't just four, but four and a half. That was an important number. This meant he was almost ready for kindergarten, and that made him big. Big enough to start big responsibilities, like caring for his baby brother, Malcolm.

Because of this, he agreed to be placed in the staff bathroom cabinet by his teacher Daya. It was a small dark place that smelled of floor cleaner. Felix didn't care for the smell. It burned his nose. He stood there, first looking at Daya, then at Malcolm. Determined to make it work, he curled up close to his brother in the cramped space.

Usually, Felix wouldn't dare squeeze his body into a cabinet, let alone allow his brother to do so. His mother told him sternly that the cabinets were not for play. It wasn't safe. This was different. He knew Miss Daya was serious and that this was not a game.

Before leaving them, Miss Daya handed him two glow sticks, "So it won't be so scary." She placed them in his hands, then gently closed the door.

"Don't make a sound, not a noise. I will be back when it is safe." He repeated her instructions in his mind. He wasn't sure what it was about her expression, but he knew he didn't like it. It left a hard, uncomfortable ball in his stomach.

Cracking one of the glow sticks, they listen carefully as she closes the bathroom door. They stayed quiet in that dark space, Felix shifting every time Malcolm moved. He tried to make his brother as comfortable as possible, knowing he was only little and wouldn't want to stay long.

"Out now?" Malcolm finally asked, turning to face Felix in their cramped box-like space.

"Not until Miss Daya comes back, we promised." Malcolm began to scrunch his face together. Felix recognized it as the beginning of a tantrum. Not wanting to disappoint his teacher, he lifted a glow stick to Malcolm's eyes.

"Here, take this. It's extra special. It's for you." Malcolm snatched the glow stick from his hands and began to roll it between his own. Felix let out a sigh of relief and went back to focus on sounds outside the cabinet.

They stayed this way for what seemed like hours. The silence was only broken by Malcolm's soft complaints and the glow stick hitting the hard surface of their confined space. Not once did they try to move from the cabinet, not even when the quiet was interrupted by loud banging and yelling. Even when the other children cried and the adults screamed.

They stayed even when Malcolm became scared and began to cry. Felix gently rubbed his brother's face, singing him songs from circle time with Mr. Kenny. Malcolm loved the days of the week song, but Felix always forgot the day after Tuesday. They stayed this way until it became quiet again.

"Hot in here." Malcolm was sweating. Only now did Felix realize how much harder it was to breathe. Felix was sure Miss Daya wouldn't be terribly upset if he opened the door, just for air.

Felix pressed his hand against the door, but it wouldn't budge. He pressed harder, but still nothing.

"Malcolm, I'm not strong enough to open the door. Can you help me?" Malcolm reached out as they both pressed as hard as they could against the door. With a pop, the door was released, slamming against the bathroom wall with a loud thud. They waited as the sound vibrated off the walls.

The bathroom was dark and empty. A sliver of red light shone under the door. Felix pressed his ear against the wood, trying to hear anything. There was no sound. He looked at Malcolm, happily waving his glow stick in the vast emptiness of the staff bathroom. Deciding it might be time to leave, he placed his hand on the cold metal of the handle and gave it a little turn.